One of Michael Kaye’s first venture capital investments was in a company in Silicon Valley. A week later, the company announced much poorer numbers than they’d shared with him.
“It was bitterly disappointing and suspect. I wasn’t a seasoned investor and got different advice from people.
I asked Chuck, who said, ‘Tell them you want your money back.’ I thought, that’s brilliant. Chuck said, ‘If you don’t get your money back, you ought to sue them,’ and that’s what we did.
We got our money back. Chuck’s advice cut through all the hogwash. There were a number of instances like that over the years. When you came to him with a business issue, he very quickly went right to the jugular and gave great counsel on how to deal with it.”
—Michael Kaye, founder, ClearLight Partners, where Martin was a partner
Martin would charter boats in the Mediterranean or Bahamas and invite friends.
“Chuck would organize the itinerary and do so much research on where we’d go. It was always a blast. He loved to do research. Chuck knew every international flag on every boat. He always had challenges on them, and none of us could come close.”
—Carl McLarand, co-founder, chairman, MVE & Partners
I will never forget our first breakfast together, at the Island Hotel, where we spent the morning discussing Austrian economics, something quite dear to his heart.”
—Daniele Struppa, Chapman University president
“I first met Chuck and Twyla Martin when we were in the early stages of developing the vision for our film school. I clearly remember that we had dinner in the kitchen of their elegant home, filled with California art, perched on a cliff overlooking Emerald Bay.
Over dinner, they quizzed me about that vision and, excited by what we had planned, volunteered to be ambassadors to the Orange County community. I can’t begin to tell you how many people they introduced me to over the past 20 years and what a difference, not only their personal support but also those very important connections have made in bringing our film school into being.”
—Bob Bassett, Dodge College of Film and Media Arts, Chapman University
When Andrew Policano was debating whether to stay at Wisconsin or go to Georgetown or UCI, Chuck Martin would send him emails.
“The emails would include photos overlooking the ocean from his house, particularly in January, when I’m in Wisconsin.”
—Andrew Policano, former dean, business school
“The principles that he established at Westar carried us through the years.
No. 1, be sure you’re buying something at the right price, treat people really well because they are the key to success, and have a good strategy.
—John Clark, Westar Capital
“I first heard of Chuck Martin when I was president of the Laguna Beach Museum of Art and I put an early bid on a piece of art at a fundraising auction. Later that evening, I was told Mr. Martin was trying to get us to renege on that purchase so he could buy it. I said no frigging way.”
When the pair began working to combine the art museums in Laguna Beach and Newport Beach to form the Orange County Museum of Art, both communities were upset.
“There were death threats over the naming. Tires were slashed. Cars dented. Protestors were outside my home. All of these years in business, and I never got sued until this. Artists made voodoo dolls out of Chuck and me.”
—Gilbert LeVasseur, founder, LeVasseur Capital
“I first met Chuck in 1978 when we went on a retreat to Aspen to discuss a center to promote free enterprise. I love skiing, and to go on a private jet out to Aspen was great. We skied during the day and had these meetings later. In the evenings, I was so mesmerized by this man and impressed by his intellect and depth and breadth of knowledge. I quickly concluded he was a Renaissance man.”
—James Doti, Chapman University president, 1991-2016
“He was absolutely dedicated to this region and to higher education. He loved mentoring leaders. He knew all of our students were fantastic. Every large university has a group that wanted to be pushed even more. They could have gone to Harvard or Stanford. His desire was to see a real honors program develop at our college. He felt the keystone of opportunity is really through hard work and education, because that was his personal life story.
I’m genuinely heartbroken. He was a great guy.”
—Howard Gillman, UCI chancellor
“We met a couple of years ago because he wrote a white paper that the chancellor gave me on what UCI can do to take its honors program to the next level. Chuck’s idea was to really identify what students should master: critical thinking, complex problem solving, teamwork.
He was very passionate about what made a society and the people prosper economically and also be happy and successful.
He appreciated that I listened to his ideas, and I appreciated that he listened to mine. He enjoyed the intellectual back and forth as much as I did.”
—Michael Dennin, UCI vice provost of Teaching and Learning; dean, Division of Undergraduate Education
“Martin bought a famous piece of art from a Hollywood mogul in the late 1990s. The mogul said he was selling a piece of art to buy an internet company. Chuck said that’s fine—I’m selling an internet company so I can buy a piece of art. Chuck came out way ahead on that one.”
—Rick Keller, co-founder, chairman, First Foundation
